Valley in Mt. Sharp

A piece of Gale crater, Mars: Here’s a view of a small piece of Mt. Sharp, both from Curiosity (on the right) and from orbit (on the left, HiRISE ESP_028269_1755). A broad valley visible from the rover is revealed to be a natural staircase of layers, partly covered by dark sand.

5 Responses to Valley in Mt. Sharp

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That’s not it, either! It’s way too small for starters. In a reply which is still “awaiting moderation” I pointed out the Hirise feature which corresponds to the annotated 9.3 km peak in the Curiosity view of your Sept 3, 2012 post, Distances to Mt. Sharp. ( It’s labelled PEAK here. )

The correct peak ( as claimed by me, of course, but I think it’s obvious ) is about three frames to the left and one frame down on the scale of your Hirise excerpt.

Disregard the “way too small” remark. I was viewing a truncated screen where the PEAK notation in the Hirise view was obscured, and I thought the small feature near the base of the white arrow was indicated. Of course, the large label indicates the same peak as your “Distances” post, but remains in error. The peak you identify is to the left of the triangular peak. Note the broad wall extending to the right with prominent striations. This is plainly visible in the Curiosity panorama at the rear of the valley you mention. In the correct identification, you can see that the valley adjacent to the triangular peak extends straight away from the Curiosity POV in both representations.